See SpaceX launch picture-perfect nighttime Starlink mission

An orange-tinted white fire blasts from the bottom of a rocket rising in the center of the image. The ground is obscured by fog as the rocket begins to climb a black sky.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base, 12:09 a.m. EDT, June 20 (0409 GMT, 9:09 p.m., July 19, local California time). (Image credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX sure knows how to photograph a rocket launch.

SpaceX launched 15 of its Starlink satellites into orbit overnight, steadily adding to the company's broadband megaconstellation. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket occurred at 12:09 a.m. EDT, June 20 (0409 GMT, 9:09 p.m., July 19, local California time), from SpaceX's facilities at Vandenberg Space Force Base.

This was the 10th liftoff for this booster, and the 48th launch so far this year for SpaceX. Approximately 9.5 minutes after launch, the rocket's first stage successfully landed on SpaceX's autonomous drone ship Of Course I Still Love You, located in the Pacific Ocean.

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Vandenberg, which is known for being generally foggy and overcast for the majority of the launches it sees, experienced an unusually clear night, with only a thin layer of fog covering the launch area.

A few hours after launch, SpaceX tweeted some photos of Falcon 9's ascent that gorgeously capture the rocket's picturesque journey to orbit.

A tall streak of light rises from a low, fog-covered ground into a dark sky streaked with the movement of the stars, captured through the camera's long exposure to the light. — A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on July 20, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)

The 15 Starlink satellites were delivered to low Earth orbit (LEO), where they will contribute to the expansion of SpaceX's enormous satellite internet network.

An aurora of white spread out from a pinpoint in the sky like mist from a hose, highlighting the rocket's expanding plume as it climbs the atmosphere against a dark, starry night sky. — A plume of gas in the sky resulting from the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on July 20, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX has launched nearly 4,500 Starlink satellites to date, and has clearance to increase that number up to 12,000.

The faint image of a rocket is seen in the shadows of the black night sky as a yellow-white fire bursts from its end, fading to shades of blue and purple as the rocket ascends. — A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on July 20, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)

The company's ultimate goal for their internet service are much loftier, however, as they are currently seeking approval to increase the megaconstellation by an additional 30,000 satellites.

A tall streak of light rises across the image from silhouetted trees in the foreground, against a dark, starry sky — A timelapse showing the path a SpaceX Falcon 9 took after lifting off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on July 20, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX)

— SpaceX Starlink satellites had to make 25,000 collision-avoidance maneuvers in just 6 months — and it will only get worse

— SpaceX aborts Starlink satellite launch with 5 seconds left in countdown

Earlier this morning, SpaceX tweeted another round of photos from last night's launch, which further captures Falcon's fiery liftoff against California's starry night sky.

As their steady routine of rocket launches continues, the next Starlink mission is scheduled in just two days. On Saturday (July 22), SpaceX will launch another batch of the satellites from Launch Complex-40, at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 7:31 p.m. EDT (2331 GMT).

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Josh Dinner is Space.com's Content Manager. He is a writer and photographer with a passion for science and space exploration, and has been working the space beat since 2016. Josh has covered the evolution of NASA's commercial spaceflight partnerships, from early Dragon and Cygnus cargo missions to the ongoing development and launches of crewed missions from the Space Coast, as well as NASA science missions and more. He also enjoys building 1:144 scale models of rockets and human-flown spacecraft. Find some of Josh's launch photography on Instagram and his website, and follow him on Twitter, where he mostly posts in haiku.

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